mthoopsfan
Well-known member
"The Trump administration is considering an executive order that could increase scrutiny of the explosion in payments to college athletes since 2021, after the president met with former Alabama coach Nick Saban, White House officials said.
Trump met with Saban on Thursday night when he was in Tuscaloosa to deliver the University of Alabama’s commencement address. Saban talked about “NIL” deals with Trump, telling the president how he believed the influx of money had damaged college sports.
Trump said he agreed with Saban and would look at crafting an executive order, people familiar with the meeting said. Trump told aides to begin studying what an order could say, the people said.
Saban didn’t propose ending NIL but “reforming” it, according to a person with direct knowledge of the meeting. He described how it was causing an uneven playing field, the people said, with an arms race among powerhouse schools.
The result is a freewheeling marketplace where nearly 4,300 Division I football players switched schools in 2024 and an estimated $1.67 billion changed hands in 2024-25, according to Opendorse, a platform that facilitates NIL deals.
“The people out there need to know this model is unsustainable,” Saban said in January on a radio show. He said it was unfair for some universities to pay and spend astronomically more than others."
Trump met with Saban on Thursday night when he was in Tuscaloosa to deliver the University of Alabama’s commencement address. Saban talked about “NIL” deals with Trump, telling the president how he believed the influx of money had damaged college sports.
Trump said he agreed with Saban and would look at crafting an executive order, people familiar with the meeting said. Trump told aides to begin studying what an order could say, the people said.
Saban didn’t propose ending NIL but “reforming” it, according to a person with direct knowledge of the meeting. He described how it was causing an uneven playing field, the people said, with an arms race among powerhouse schools.
The result is a freewheeling marketplace where nearly 4,300 Division I football players switched schools in 2024 and an estimated $1.67 billion changed hands in 2024-25, according to Opendorse, a platform that facilitates NIL deals.
“The people out there need to know this model is unsustainable,” Saban said in January on a radio show. He said it was unfair for some universities to pay and spend astronomically more than others."
